This circa 1900 advertisement is for rental of the steam yacht Mizpah, which operated at the turn of the century for general tourist purposes in the Casco Bay area.

The ship was one of the first generation steam vessels that brought the latest transportation technology to the business of tourism in Maine. The ship was owned by Albert H. Grannell (1843-1905), a grocery clerk who bought the Mizpah after retiring, and his nephew, Wilmer Eugene Sawyer.

Grannell, who was born in New Brunswick, Canada, and lived on Chebeague Island. His profession was a “stone sloop” sailor from 1855-1890 and a grocer and co-owner of Hamilton & Grannell from 1890-1905. Sawyer resided on High Street in Yarmouth from 1870-1944.

The yacht was built in 1891 in Friendship and her home port was in Machias. She weighed 9 tons, was 29 feet long, 11 feet wide and had a depth of 5 1/2 feet.

In commemoration of Maine’s bicentennial this year, The Forecaster is featuring historical highlights and artifacts from our communities’ past 200 years. This feature can be found in print and online every other week.

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